Broken Record
by smile1
Summary: Lit! -One Parter- Jess and Rory have been trapped between the walls of oblivion for so long that their happiness seems real and their smiles genuine. Too blinded to see that they have become used to the lies. All they have to hold on to is each other.


**Disclaimer: **I don't own the series Gilmore Girls or the original characters. All I own is my imagination and the plot.

**A/N: **Hey :-) I found myself not being able to stop writing this week and I couldn't help but turn an idea into a one parter. :-) I hope you'll enjoy it, even though it's not that long. Thanks again, _Alexia _for looking through it for me. :-) Please be so kind to read the A/N at the bottom.

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**Broken Record**

-x-

I'm being told by my intuition that I have to let him go

Though I know that I could never do so...I love him...

-x-

A melody swirled in through the keyhole of her mind, unknown to her until it made her consciousness stir and awake from its slumber, causing it to bloom like a flower. Its petals unfolding carefully and shedding themselves of the morning dew that covered them before they allowed themselves to take advantage of the fresh rays of light that the sun was throwing down on them. Her conscious worked in the same way, it had to shed itself of last night's dreams before it could function properly and become aware of its blatant surroundings. Luckily, she gave it a handful of seconds before her eyes opened, struggling at first as they tried to get accustomed to the break of day as it streamed through the cracks at the sides of the curtains that covered the few windows in _their_ bedroom.

As soon as her eyes had been fully pried open by the harsh light, she regretted opening them because of the random colors and shapes that she was being confronted with. Soon the chaos started giving her a headache and she closed her eyes for a few more seconds before opening them again, this time able to put every shade and shape in its proper place so she could recognize the objects around her, although she knew that she could recognize them blindly and simply by touch if she only tried.

Now that she was fully awake, the melody that had crept into her head earlier sounded clearer to her ears and had a more familiar ring to it - one she hadn't immediately been able to pinpoint because of the haze of dreams that had still clouded over her consciousness, although she was often lulled to sleep by melodies like this and often dreamt about their words - words that often held great meaning to the both of _them_, but were also often blurred by the eerie sound of guitars and the low rhythmic beating of the drums. Every touch, beat, and strike was in sync with each other, though, if you had an ear for music, you would realize that every single instrument stood on its own at the same time.

She had plenty of practice in that department, just lying on the bed and listening to the music as it vibrated through the walls, making it seem as if it was coming from every single corner. Although she often chose to listen to one particular sound, one particular instrument: the lead guitar that could hit the highest notes if you knew how to reach them and he did. He knew how to reach them because of the practice he used to have and still had, although neither he nor she still bothered to call it practice. He was too good for that and every time she had the chance to witness one of his band rehearsals or one of his gigs, she would watch in amazement as his fingers flew from string to string, knowing exactly what note he was supposed to hit next.

He had been playing guitar for as long as she knew him. At first, it was an old looking one with worn strings, but later it became an electric one, in a bright shade of red with a set of new strings that were going to be replaced frequently in the future. She had saved up her money and bought the guitar for him because she knew that it would be worth it and it was; he started to play more often and even tried his hand at writing both the music and lyrics. He loved playing guitar so much that when they decided to move in together (in a house that she paid rent for every month) he quit his job so he could focus on his music 24/7. Practices with his band became a daily ritual for him and he booked gigs for the band with ease, hoping that they, or at least _he_, would finally be discovered after all these hardworking years.

Of course, with the gigs came the rejections, not because he didn't play well enough or he didn't have enough talent, but because of the type of music he played which was old fashioned rock and roll. She loved it and the passion he had for it, but she also knew that his dreams rested upon his fragile hopes. Yet she stuck by him and dreamed his dreams, hoping that fate wouldn't be cruel to him forever, but would repay him for his hard work and determination.

With a sigh, she turned onto her side, unaware of the fact that the music had stopped. Sometimes, a particular melody would stay with her throughout an entire day; she would hum or whistle it without realizing what she was doing and therefore, even if the music had stopped, it would still be repeated in her mind like a broken record. However, it would come to an abrupt stop whenever he would enter the room, just like it did this time; all thoughts faded like a dream would after she had awakened. Her eyes flew up to him as he entered the room, though not to his eyes, instead they lingered on the jacket he wore. A jacket she couldn't picture him without, not even when she closed her eyes, only the image changed with time; the jacket used to be a couple of shades darker and his hair used to be a couple of layers shorter, but other than that, he looked like a flawless copy of himself a few years ago.

''Hey,'' she said, causing for his eyes to slip down to hers.

''Hey,'' he returned, a wisp of a smile barely touching his lips as he noted how the sleepiness had faded the blue of her eyes to a soft shade of baby blue, giving her eyes a dreamy edge as if she was still trapped within a world between reality and illusion.

''I didn't mean to wake you,'' he continued, lowering the tone of his voice slightly as he sat down on the edge of the bed, although he knew that his words held a frivolous meaning because tomorrow they would go through the same routine.

''I don't care,'' she said, her voice lingering sweetly because of the honey that still paved her throat. ''I'm used to it.'' She snuggled up against him, curling her body around his like a snake, taking advantage of his body heat.

He looked down at her, his smile now fully touching his lips. He briefly ran his hand through her tousled hair before running it down to her face and letting it come to a rest on her cheek.

''I have a gig tonight,'' he said, trying not to let his smile slip from his face.

She seemed to sense the change in his spirit, but then again, she always did. She reached for his hand that was still warming her cheek with its weight and entwined her fingers with his so she could pull it down to her mouth and place a kiss on his knuckles. ''What time?''

''Late,'' he answered, his eyes never leaving her figure as she closed her own and held his hand against her lips. ''you don't have to come.''

''I want to come,'' came her mumbled response. ''Just tell me what to wear and who I need to impress.''

He gently pulled his hand free and brought it up to the side of her face, rubbing her cheek with his thumb. ''I'm the one who has to do all the work to impress, you - you just have to be there.''

He leaned in and kissed her on her forehead before trailing down to her lips, which got the expected response from her: giggling. He used to get slightly annoyed at her when she would do that, but now the corners of his eyes just lifted slightly with amusement as he continued trailing kisses down to her lips. When their lips did meet, she managed to control her giggling and give herself utterly to him, allowing him to set the pace of passion and decide when to break their kiss and leave her breathless and him with the faint taste of strawberry in his mouth.

-x-x-x-

She took another sip from the festive red cup she was holding in her hand. She had been holding it ever since she had filled it with punch. She had filled it with punch instead of beer which she was grateful for because the men and women around her seemed to forget that they were no longer seventeen in their drunken state. Most of them were 'dancing', although it all looked like jumping to her. They were jumping around and moving their heads from left to right while they sung along with songs they hadn't heard before. The ties that had been neatly tied only hours ago now hung loosely around their necks, the buttons of formal jackets had been unbuttoned and hair that had been neatly pinned up at the beginning of this night now hung messily in front of their eyes. These sophisticated men and women that had graduated many years before had seemed to have forgotten that small fact and were partying like high school students.

Her eyes found his in this chaos, looking for the comfort she always sought in moments like this. These moments reminded her of her own high school years, of the time in which they had met and she just needed to check if everything was okay because back then, their relationship hadn't been this steady. She searched for him at these moments because somewhere, she was afraid that he would turn back into the person he used to be, thoughtlessly rebellious and coldly distant. But when her eyes met his, she felt guilty and even a little foolish for letting herself think something like that. Over time, she had gotten to know him and she had learned to trust him, lean on him whenever she needed the support and he had done the same, although he had known from the very start that he could 'surrender' himself to her completely.

He winked at her, he always did, and she smiled, content with what they had even if it was for a few minutes. She took him in as he stood there on the small stage, his hands pulling at the strings of his guitar and his eyes shining with life. This was how she was going to remember him when she had faded into nothing but dust. It was nice to see him so genuinely happy and she prayed that his good mood wouldn't be lost at the end of this night; she hoped that the 'important people' and the 'right people' finally took notice of what they had been missing for so long and saw what she saw every single second. She didn't want him to have to let go of yet another piece of his hope because without that, his dreams would slowly start to crumble.

With one last gulp, she finished her drink and got up to find a bathroom. Luckily for her, she found a bathroom that had an actual couch. Of course, it had to be in the horrible shade of lime green, but nonetheless, it was a couch - a place she could sit for a while without finding herself being distracted by the all the screams and chatter. This party had actually convinced her not to go to her own high school reunion when it would come around.

She lay down on the couch, promising herself that she would only close her eyes for a couple of minutes...that eventually lead into a peaceful slumber.

Her eyes only opened again when she felt someone lightly shake her, realizing almost instantly that she must have fallen asleep. She batted her eyelashes a few times before she grew accustomed enough to the light to open her eyes completely. The face that greeted her caused her to smile and her heartbeat to flutter, he always could.

''Jess.''

''Sorry to wake you, angel,'' he whispered affectionately, not caring since there was no one around to see, ''but it's time to go home.''

''Did you get it?'' she asked, her eyes curious.

He didn't say anything for a couple of scattered seconds and just brushed a strand of her away from her face.

''No,'' he finally admitted.

She didn't say anything as she pushed herself up a little with her elbow and wrapping her free arm around his neck. When she felt his arms around her waist, her other arm wrapped itself around his neck, too. She nuzzled her face in the hollow of his neck, her lips lightly pressing against his skin, even when she said her next words.

''You can try again tomorrow?''

''Yeah,'' he said before placing a kiss on the top of her head.

They stayed like this for a little longer, seeking the comfort they both needed. They had been trapped within these walls of oblivion for too long and it had made them too blind, too oblivious to even bother to see through the lies any longer. Now they were caught up in them - so caught up that it made them happy and their smiles almost genuine. They held on to each other's dreams and their own and would struggle to reach them, even though that battle had already been lost many times before. In the end, all they would have to fall back on, to hold on to, was each other.

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**REVIEW! Please? :-) **Well, I guess it's sweet or something like that. Anyway, thanks for reading it. If you are interested, please check out the updates for my stories: _Cornered _(Lit), _Torn _(Trory) an _Alienated _(Roswell) Or pick the series that you like the most :-) You don't have to. Oh, oh! (excited here) :-) If you really have nothing else to do, check out my first original short story at fictionpress. It's called _Never Never Land _and my pen name is smile4theworld. Thanks anyway. :-)


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